TINY, landlocked Rwanda is sometimes touted as Africa’s high-tech economy. It is still a bit early for that, however. Neighbouring Uganda produces far more computer-science graduates. Countries such as Nigeria and Kenya are even further ahead. South Africa is out of sight. But technology is the core of Rwanda’s plan to transform its economy by 2020. The country seems ready to back its ambition with money and policies.
A pioneering scheme to computerise a whole people
By 2012, for instance, Rwanda wants every child in the country between the ages of nine and 12, 1.3m children in all, to have a laptop, each with an internet or intranet connection to download free educational software and electronic books. “We estimate the start-up cost will be $313m,” says Richard Niyonkuru of Rwanda’s education ministry. If all goes well, the programme will embrace children between six and eight by 2015.
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